Emergency Contraception

If you have had sex without contraception or your contraception has failed (i.e. split condom or missed contraception) emergency contraception can help prevent a pregnancy.

There are two types of emergency contraception and these are available at our clinics.

Emergency Contraception Pill

The sooner you take emergency contraception the better it will work.

There are two kinds of the emergency contraceptive pill; these are sometimes called the ‘morning after pill’.

Levonogestrel (Levonelle) can be taken up to 72 hours (3 days) after unprotected sex. Ulipristal Acetate (ellaOne) can be taken up to 120 hours (5 days) after unprotected sex. Both pills work by preventing or delaying ovulation. Many of the Somerset Pharmcies offer both free to women under 25 years of age

If you need emergency contraception please phone or walk in to one of our clinics, if you are not able to get to one our clinics you can also obtain emergency contraception from;

You can choose to have an IUD (coil) fitted, the IUD is a small device that is fitted in your uterus by a specially trained doctor or nurse. It is over 99% effective at preventing pregnancy but it needs to be fitted within five days (120 hours) of unprotected sex or up to five days after the earliest time you could have released an egg (ovulated).

You can have an IUD fitted for emergency contraception at our service; your GP surgery may also be able to fit an IUD.